Deathspell Omega - Paracletus

Some patterns are easy to notice and the production work on DsO's recordings during the past 6 years is one of those easy to spot repetitions.
For some bands a certain blueprint works just fine and becomes - with time - the core and identity of the band. But for others, it's not always the case.

Si Monumentum marked a major shift in sound, ideology, composition and the visual aesthetics of the band.. something that was/is obvious to anyone familiar with their earlier works.

Sound wise - and that's what concern Tactile Sound, the shift was mainly from a typical/standard early 90's Black Metal production (a.k.a the necro production that characterized the sound of many Scandinavian Black Metal bands - mostly Norwegian ones) to a more "modern one" so to speak.

This shift could be seen more of a statement rather than a simple change. A declaration that DsO does not wish to belong or remain entrapped  in the shadows of old gods and rather embark on a trip of their own drug formula  and dosage. And frankly, the release of Si Monumentum back in the day was somehow similar to the first introduction of LSD in the market. Varied reactions from the consumers and endless debates. However, a change in sound is always welcome especially in a genre that is in stagnation and isn't known for its open-mindedness and acceptance of "alien" elements.

With the release of Paracletus DsO placed itself in the same place when they first started. They seem way too keen on their sound blueprint and are consciously avoiding any further sound exploration. Afraid to take a step further? Or did they just reach a dead end? Or are they simply trying to maintain their recent gathered followers? Many questions can be raised and the answer will remain unknown until the next release.

Comparing between the production on Si Monumentum and Paracletus and what came out in between is almost unavoidable due to the minor sound tweaking. One blueprint (an overall muffed bass sounding production with a crypt-like atmosphere) with the same ingredients only with a different dosage that kept altering from one release to another up until the present. Although Paracletus doesn't differ much from its predecessor Fas and it is by no mean equal to it, but on the contrary, it is inferior making it the worse sounding album in their last 6 years of their discography.

You're going to a certain gig, it's in this small place, underground.. you open the door, take the stairs and start going down to reach the big, thick door imprisoning the music behind it and leaving you with an echoing rumble. This is how Paracletus sound, like being trapped in the corridor away from where the action is taking place. A muffed sounding album cut out from all mid and high frequencies rendering it completely blurry with a never-ending rumbling bass that explodes during the faster parts. It's a one giant suffocating sound.

The reasons for such a result are crystal clear:

- A low/fat drum kick and a bass guitar badly captured that get worse with blast beats and faster parts.
- A wrong choice of guitar distortion where it sounds like a badly equalized overdrive on a bass amp

Topping this with a more of a low pitched vocals, the album screams for a higher pitched sounds rendering it stale and seriously lacking sound dynamics. The combination worked perfectly on Si Monumentum, where the vocal variations and the adding of different samples/sound layers mixed with a clearer guitar sound gave an immense room for the bass guitar and drums to shine and add depth.

Paracletus sounds like a reverse caricature of Norwegian Black Metal where the band deliberately dropped every single treble and mid knob down to zero.